By definition, black nationalism means, “a social and political movement advocating the separation of blacks from whites and self-government for black people.”
However, I believe the meaning is meant more for the black society to be strong in their cultural, political and social identity. There were many people who remained closely knit with themselves and their surroundings back then but now, many people teeter back and forth with what it even means to be black. This is something that I think we, as black students of a HBCU, should work on.
Back in my mom’s day, there was a healthy amount of black individuals who knew what it meant to be “black in America”. Not only was there a strong background of Christianity for blacks to rely on, there were also many forms of demeaning tactics, such as not being allowed to vote, groups, like the Ku Klux Klan and situations like lynchings that caused blacks to have to stick together and bring each other up.
It seems as though with the beginning of desegregation, it has been increasingly difficult for blacks to discern whether or not whites are for or against the empowerment of black people. With each passing generation, there has been an increase in an attempt on blacks to assimilate to the white race. The blatant discrimination dwindled down and it seemed as though whites were either becoming more accepting of us or internalizing their true feelings of hate.
It is easier for some whites to accept blacks if they look foolish or they are in a position of catering to them. A good example is Lil Wayne and Oprah. Lil Wayne is one of the most foolish rappers out and Oprah loves catering to her white audiences. But if white people are demanding the product that Wayne and Oprah are putting out there, doesn’t that mean that blacks have come far? No, that simply means that they, in a way, sold out their race. Instead of providing a positive image for our youth to look at, which Wayne seems to fail at, and fix the problems of blacks, which Oprah can’t seem to get right, they have caused the black community to fall backward a few steps culturally.
To put it simply, the black community is lacking black nationalism. It’s not so much that we need to separate ourselves from whites, but that we need to work on knowing more about our culture here in America. Not just about slavery or how hard black people had it. There needs to be more details of why things happened, not just that they happened. Black people also need to start to look out for one another more and help bring our people up. If we can empower our people through positive images and teachings, we could at least live up to the “knowing our identity” part of black nationalism.